Frequently Asked Questions


Section 1: General

1.1: How long will you stay free?
1.2: You guys are so nice, how can I thank you?
1.3: I forgot my password, can you give me another one?
1.4: I forgot my username, can you tell me what it is?

Section 2: Email

2.1: How does Netfolk email work?
2.2: How long does it take for the mail server to forward my email to a member?
2.3: Why do I have to be a member to respond to an ad?
2.4: How do I check email sent to me by other memebers?
2.5: My email got bounced back to me, but I'm registered!
2.6: How do I check/change my registered email address?
2.7: Can I send attachments, like photographs, with my email to other members?
2.8: I'm not getting any mail at all, is the system even working?

Section 3: Profiles

3.1: I've created a Profile, how long will it stay up?
3.2: How do I include a photo with my Profile?
3.3: I created a profile but it doesn't appear in the city I'm browsing in.
3.4: How do you calculate distances between me and other members?
Section 4: Chat
(see the Chat FAQ.)



Answers to the Frequently Asked Questions


Section 1: General

1.1: How long will you stay free?
We believe that it is possible to provide the Internet community with a full-featured personals service at no cost to the end user. We never plan on instituting membership fees.

1.2: You guys are so nice, how can I thank you?
If you like our service and would like others to know about it, then we need your help! Please nominate our site for recognition.

1.3: I forgot my password, can you give me another one?
Yes! Just follow this link to change your password.

1.4: I forgot my username, can you tell me what it is?
Yes! Just follow this link to look up your username.



Section 2: Email

2.1: How does Netfolk email work?
All members get an email address of the form "anon.youraccount@netfolk.com". When you send email addressed to this account the email comes to us. Upon receipt, our mail server automatically forwards the to the member's real email address. This is an address that they provide upon registration. The member can then read your email and reply to it just as he or she would for any other email.

Note that before the mail server forwards your email to the member, it replaces your return email address with your anonymous Netfolk address. Thus, the recipient of the email never sees your real address until you are ready to give it out. Be sure to remove any signature files that may be automatically appended to the body your letter by your mail program.

2.2: How long does it take for the mail server to forward my email to a member?
In most situations, it takes less than one minute to forward the email.

2.3: Why do I have to be a member to respond to an ad?
There are a few reasons why we require membership. Most importantly, in order to maintain proper anonymity, both sender and recipient of email letters must be members. Requiring registration of email addresses is the only way we can anonymize both parties.

Another benefit of registering is that based on your zip code, we can calculate the distance between you and other members.

2.4: How do I check email sent to me by other members?
Once somebody sends email addressed to your anonymous Netfolk account, the email automatically gets forwarded to your real email address. This is the address you entered at registration. You can then read or reply to the email just like you would any other email.

Note that when you reply to the email, your return email address is replaced with your anonymous Netfolk address by our mail server. Thus, the recipient of the email never sees your real address until you are ready to give it out. Be sure to remove any signature files that may be automatically appended to the body your letter by your mail program.

2.5: The email I tried sending to another member got bounced back to me, but I'm registered!
This happens when you try to send email from an address different from your registered email address. Note that subtle differences between the address you have registered with us and the address you are sending email from cannot be distinguished by the mail server. For instance, the address "jsmith@mail.nowhere.com" is different from the address "jsmith@nowhere.com". If your registered address is "jsmith@mail.nowhere.com" but the address you are sending email from is "jsmith@nowhere.com", then your email would be returned to you as coming from an unregistered address.

There are two ways to correct this problem. The first way is to change the address you have registered with us so that it matches the address you are sending email from (see question 2.6). Alternatively, you can change the address you are sending email from so that it matches the address you have registered with us.

To change the address you are sending email from, change the parameters on your mail program. For example, if you are using Netscape Navigator, set the From: field under Options | Mail and News Preferences.

Note that some ISP's will modify your From: address by tacking on an extra name token that you can't control. For example, some ISP's send your email from "jsmith@mail8.nowhere.com", and other times it sends it from the address "jsmith@mail34.nowhere.com". To get around this problem, set the Reply-To: field in your mail program. This will let our mail handler know who the sender actually is regardless of where the email is actually being sent from.

If you set different addresses in both From: and the Reply-To: fields in your mail program, the address in the Reply-To: field will be taken as the real address of the sender.

2.6: How do I check/change my registered email address?
You can modify any of your registration information by editing the registration information in your portfolio.

2.7: Can I send attachments, like photographs, with my email to other members?
Yes, you can. Compose your email any way you'd like. Our mail handler is MIME compliant, so it's alright to send attachments, like photographs, along with your email.

2.8: I'm not getting any mail at all, is the system even working?
Yes, it's working. Feel free to test the system by sending an email to your anonymous Netfolk account.




Section 3: Profiles

3.1: I've created a Profile. How long will it stay up?
Your profile will stay up indefinately. If you are receiving too much email and would like to hide your profile, you can do so by checking "No" from the "Show your profile" box on the Your Profile page.

3.2: How do I include a photo with my Profile?
You can either send already scanned photographs to us by email, or you can send us a printed photograph through the Postal Service to be scanned. There is a handling charge of $10 US Dollars per photograph, whether the photo is already scanned or not. Be sure to include your username in all correspondences. You may send us up to three photographs.

To send us your already scanned photographs, send them as an attachment to your email to help@netfolk.com. The images should be no more than 400x700 pixels and less than 10KB in size. If you are sending us your print photographs for scanning and you want the photos returned, be sure to include a proper stamped return envelope. Our mailing address is:

Internet Concepts, LLC
P.O. Box 14764
Madison, WI 53714

3.3: I created a profile, but it doesn't appear in the city I'm browsing in.
Your profile is automatically inserted into the nearest metropolitan city based on the zip code you entered at registration. You can modify any of your registration information by editing the registration information in your portfolio.

3.4: How do you calculate distances between me and other members?
Distances are calculated based on the differences between the zip code of you and other members. This feature is currently available only for members located in the USA.



Additional Information


If you have any additional questions or concerns, please feel free to write us at help@netfolk.com.